NATO chief says alliance ‘ready to defend every inch of Allied territory’ after Russian drone hits member state Romania

A Russian drone collided with an apartment building in Romania, a NATO member state, early on Friday morning.

Romanian President Nicușor Dan said in a post on X on Friday morning that he had convened a meeting of his national defense council in response to what he called "the most serious incident to affect the national territory" since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in early 2022.

The collision occurred in Galați, Dan said, a city near Romania's border with Ukraine.

"We will order proportionate measures in relation to the Russian Federation," he said, adding that the strike had resulted in injuries. "The unprecedented nature of the event demands a firm, coordinated, and appropriate response — at the national, allied, and international levels."

Dan added that full responsibility lay with Russia and "the irresponsible and indiscriminate manner in which Moscow operates these weapon systems in the immediate vicinity of NATO borders, as well as the systematic disregard for international law."

He said that Romania's armed forces acted in accordance with established procedure and were under firm orders to shoot down the drone as soon as conditions allowed. But a decision was ultimately made not to shoot the aircraft down due to "heightened risk of endangering civilian safety."

All NATO allies and EU member countries had been informed of the incident, Dan said. His government has requested additional deployments of NATO anti-drone capabilities to Romania, and will alert the UN Security Council about Russia's "repeated violation of international law."

The apartment building was struck as Russia attacked Ukrainian infrastructure near the border between Romania and Ukraine, a NATO spokesperson said Friday morning.

In a post on X, NATO chief Mark Rutte said he had told Dan the military alliance stood in solidarity with Romania.

"NATO stands ready to defend every inch of Allied territory," Rutte said. "We will continue to enhance our readiness to deter and defend against any threat, including from drones. Russia's reckless behavior is a danger to us all."

He added that the damage done in Romania "showed yet again that the implications of their illegal war of aggression don't stop at the border."

"Russia's war needs to end, as does Russia's disregard for civilian safety," he said. "For our part, we will continue to strengthen our deterrence and defense at home and continue our support for Ukraine as they defend against Russia's aggression."

"We stand with our NATO Ally Romania and condemn this reckless incursion on its territory," Matthew Whitaker, the U.S. ambassador to NATO, said in an X post following the incident. "Our thoughts are with the injured in Galati. We will defend every inch of NATO territory."

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a post on X on Friday morning that "Russia's war of aggression has crossed yet another line."

"A Russian drone incursion struck a densely populated area in Romania, injuring civilians. On EU territory," she said. "We stand in full solidarity with Romania and its people. As we continue strengthening our security and deterrence, especially on our Eastern border, we will keep increasing the pressure on Russia."

Von der Leyen added that the EU was preparing a 21st package of sanctions on Russia.

CNBC reached out to the Russian government for comment.

Ukraine's parliament ratified a 90 billion-euro ($104.6 billion) loan agreement with the EU on Thursday.

Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. In 2014, Russia invaded and annexed Crimea, a peninsula in southern Ukraine. In the same year, armed conflict erupted in eastern Ukraine between government forces and Russian-backed separatists.